Andean Swift
Aeronautes andecolus
Attractively patterned black-and-white swift of the Andes and adjacent Pacific lowlands. Ranges widely as singles and loose flocks, sometimes feeding low with swallows, but more often higher overhead when it can be located by its distinctive, rapid-paced buzzy chatters. Plumage is distinctive: black cap, white underparts (with black belly band in west slope populations), and a white rump. Flight faster than swallows with stiff wingbeats. Like all swifts, only perches at remote nest sites and roosts.
Identification
The Andean swift is about 14 cm (5.5 in) long. It has sharply pointed wings and a long deeply forked tail. The sexes are alike. Adults of the nominate subspecies have mostly black upperparts with a white collar and band on the rump. Their face and underparts are mostly white to off-white with mottled buff on the flanks and vent. Subspecies A. a. parvulus is smaller than the nominate and the borders between black and white areas are very sharply defined. A. a. peruvianus is also smaller than the nominate. Its tail is shorter and less deeply forked, its white plumage is purer, and it has darker undertail coverts.
Taxonomy
The Andean swift was at one time placed in genus Micropus which was later merged into Aeronautes, and also in genus Apus from which it was split. Three subspecies are recognized, the nominate A. a. andecolus, A. a. parvulus, and A. a. peruvianus.
- Scientific name
- Aeronautes andecolus
- Authority
- (d'Orbigny & Lafresnaye, 1837)
- Order
- Apodiformes
- Family
- Apodidae
- Genus
- Aeronautes
Range and habitat
Subspecies A. a. parvulus of the Andean swift is the northernmost; it is found on the western slope of the Andes from Peru's Cajamarca Department south into far northern Chile's Tarapacá Region. The nominate A. a. andecolus is found from central Bolivia south to Río Negro Province in west central Argentina. A. a. peruvianus is restricted to the east slope of the Andes in southeastern Peru.<p>The Andean swift mostly inhabits semi-arid montane scrub landscapes though it is also found in both drier and more humid areas. It is occasionally seen over forested slopes. In elevation it mostly ranges between 2,500 and 3,550 m (8,200 and 11,600 ft) in Peru and Bolivia and between 2,000 and 2,500 m (6,600 and 8,200 ft) in Argentina. It has been recorded above 4,100 m (13,500 ft) in Peru.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The Andean swift is a year-round resident throughout its range, though it may temporarily move to lower elevations to avoid snowstorms.<p>Like all swifts, the Andean is an aerial insectivore, but no details of its diet are known. It often forages in flocks with wintering chimney swifts (Chaetura pelagica).<p>Little is known about the Andean swift's breeding biology. It has been documented nesting in holes in steep rock faces, including behind waterfalls, but the nest itself has not been described.<p>The Andean swift's most common vocalization is "a buzzy, grating 'tzee-tz-tz-trrr...tzee-tz-tz-tzee...'." It also makes "a series of single notes 'tzree..tzree..tzree...'."
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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